UPDATE!! If Shatner Were In Abrams' STAR TREK, This Is What It Would've Been Like...

Merrick again...
The sequence linked below is confirmed. It's from a very early draft of the script.

Merrick here...
A script fragment purporting to represent the written-but-never-filmed Shatner cameo for J.J. Abrams' STAR TREK has gone online over at TrekWeb. I'm waiting for a full confirm re: this fragment's authenticity, but it does match perfectly with everything I've heard about ShatKirk's intended appearance. I'll post an UPDATE confirming or debunking as soon as we know for sure.
Here's the scene...

ALTERNATE SCENE B
SPOCK PRIME
Then I ask that you do yourself a
favor… put away logic, and do what
feels right. The world you’ve inherited
lives in the shadow of incalculable
devastation… but there’s no reason you
must face it alone.
And from around his neck, he removes the PENDANT that
until now, we’ve only caught glimpses of. Places it on
the table beside his younger self. The feeling in his
eyes is profound…
SPOCK PRIME (CONT’D)
This was a gift to me. Representing…
a dream. One we were unable to fulfill.
(softly)
The way you can now.
And moves to the door. Stops. Offers the VULCAN SALUTE:
SPOCK PRIME (CONT’D)
As my customary farewell would appear
oddly self serving, I will simply say…
good luck.
Their eyes hold. Spock turns, disappearing into the
corridor. Young Spock stares at the empty doorway a
beat, his mind a jumble of thoughts. Looks to the
pendant… and realizes it’s a HOLO-EMITTER. After
considering a beat, he hits an activation button and a
MOVING HOLOGRAPHIC MESSAGE materializes before him:
CAPTAIN JAMES T. KIRK. WILLIAM SHATNER. As always,
brash, wry, confident — and SINGING:
KIRK/ SHATNER
Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to
you…
(stops, grins)
I know I know, it’s illogical to
celebrate something you had nothing to do
with, but I haven’t had the chance to
congratulate you on your appointment to
the ambassadorship so I thought I’d seize
the occasion… Bravo, Spock — they tell
me your first mission may take you away
for awhile, so I’ll be the first to wish
you luck… and to say…
(beat, emotional)
I miss you, old friend.
… and we’re PUSHING IN on Young Spock, taking in the
image of Kirk’s future self, the message, but above all —
the clear, unquestionable friendship these two men had…
INT. CORRIDOR – CONTINUOUS
As Spock Prime walks off down the corridor, he passes
right by a man conferring with a nurse — the man pauses,
turns… it’s SAREK. Suddenly overcome by a feeling that
the stranger who’s just passed him is… oddly familiar.
KIRK/SHATNER (V.O.)
I suppose I’d always imagined us…
outgrowing Starfleet together. Watching
life swing us into our Emeritus years…
INT. STARBASE ONE – HANGAR – ETERNAL NIGHT
MUSIC BUILDING — glass walls reveal THE ENTERPRISE at
dock, UTILITY CRAFTS floating around it, repairing.
Standing at attention in rows, THE ENTERPRISE CREW —
over four hundred of them wearing DRESS UNIFORMS — TRACK
DOWN the faces, all proud:
KIRK/SHATNER (V.O.)
I look around at the new cadets now and
can’t help thinking… has it really been
so long? Wasn’t it only yesterday we
stepped onto the Enterprise as boys?
That I had to prove to the crew I
deserved command… and their respect?
And we STOP ON YOUNG KIRK. Composed, focused, proud. A
man. And to every fan’s delight, finally wearing his
YELLOW SHIRT. The FEDERATION COMMANDANT stands at a
podium:
COMMANDANT
This assembly calls Captain James
Tiberius Kirk…
Kirk breaks from formation, pivots, marches down the
hangar — past UHURA… SULU… CHEKOV… SCOTTY. All
Beaming. Notably absent, is Spock. Kirk ascends the
stairs, snaps to attention:
COMMANDANT (CONT’D)
Your inspirational valor and supreme
dedication to your comrades are in
keeping with the highest traditions of
service and reflect utmost credit to
yourself, your crew, and the Federation.
By Starfleet Order 28455, you are hereby
directed to report to Commanding Officer,
USS Enterprise, for duty as his relief.
Kirk turns. Walks to… PIKE. In a wheelchair now,
wearing an ADMIRAL’S UNIFORM. Overnight, his hair’s
turned totally grey — but despite his trauma, his
pride’s overwhelming. They SALUTE each other:
KIRK
I relieve you, Sir.
PIKE
… I am relieved.
He opens a BOX in his lap — glorious in repose, a MEDAL:
PIKE (CONT’D)
And as Fleet Admiral, for your… unique
solution to the Kobayashi Maru, it’s my
honor to award you with a commendation
for original thinking.
Pike containing a smirk, pins the medal to Kirk’s
chest…
PIKE (CONT’D)
(a touch choked)
Congratulations, Captain.
KIRK
Thank you, Sir.
Kirk turns to the crowd. Eyes shining. WILD APPLAUSE.
OUR MUSIC SOARS. Bones leans in to Sulu, rolling his
eyes:
BONES
… Same ship, different day.
As Kirk rejoins his crew for hugs and congratulations, we
go to the BACK of the hangar… SPOCK PRIME. Watching.
Moved beyond words. He turns and leaves them to it… as
he goes…
KIRK/SHATNER (V.O.)
I know what you’d say — ‘It’s their turn
now, Jim…’ And of course you’re
right… but it got me thinking:
INT. STARFLEET HOSPITAL – EARTH – DAY
Our montage comes full circle as we END on Kirk’s
transmission:
KIRK/SHATNER
Who’s to say we can’t go one more round?
By the last tally, only twenty five
percent of the galaxy’s been chartered…
I’d call that negligent. Criminal even —
an invitation. You once said being a
starship captain was my first, best
destiny… if that’s true, then yours is
to be by my side. If there’s any true
logic to the universe… we’ll end up on
that bridge again someday.
Stops, grins. Because this is the part he needs to say
most…
KIRK/SHATNER
Admit it, Spock. For people like us, the
journey itself… is home.
Young Spock’s face. Lost in feelings that flood through
him.

...which can be found HERE!
Personally, I really like this sequence as scripted and feels it nicely addresses a nagging, nitpicky issue I had with the film: there's not enough gravitas when QuintoSpock steps onto the Enterprise bridge at the end of the movie, and asks PineKirk for permission to come aboard. Spock Prime has already tipped off PineKirk and QuintoSpock to the profundity and consequence of their friendship ("a friendship that will define you both" is what Nimoy tells QuintoSpock, for example) - PineKirk simply "granting" QuintoSpock permission to join the crew at the end doesn't feel quite accentuated enough.
This omitted sequence goes a long way towards fleshing out the "two friends/one destiny" conceit on an emotional level, although I suppose that pesky arbitrariness would've still been present in Spock's anti-momentous boarding. All they needed was one, slightly longer look between them. Something to illustrate that these characters are at least beginning to comprehend the nature of the spiritual, and literal, adventures they're about to undertake together.
What do you think?

that was very polite of you to say! yaknow, in all my internet life, I just hope that one day I could reach the greatness of bein first on a article that I dont care bout... hey maybe next time I can be first on scriptgirl article or a Moriarty review

All the Trek haters are gonna come in here spewing their bile and trying, as they have been for 7 months, to convince those of us who liked it that its crap, or simply telling us how we are idiots for liking it. On the other side will be the blind defenders doing just about the same thing. Much profanity and insulting will ensue, and the same pointless fucking argument will once again continue. I will simply sit back and watch as I have been, maybe chiming in here and there, but again, it is pointless, because the argument is pointless. But most of the time it is still entertaining.

OK, this scene with ShatKirk is a little long, but all it needed was a nice poetic editing -- less is more -- and it would've been such a tribute. AND YEAH, IT WOULD HAVE SERVED THE STORY TOO!
grrr... JJ Abrams... (>:()
NO WONDER I'M A DOCTOR WHO FAN! =0)

It sure seems like a very elegant way to insert Shatner into a film in which his presence wasn't really that necessary. I like Pine and Quinto, but frankly Shatner and especially Nimoy are, and may always be, better at inserting emotion into a scene than the other two are (so far). Too bad, but perhaps they'll find a way in the next one.
I kind of agree that Shatner's gotten a bit...portly. I hope that he'd be willing to drop a few pounds for one more turn at the wheel. Even an industrial strength girdle won't suffice this time.

Do we really need 3-4 snippets on Dawson's Trek every single friggin' day? Hey, here's one. Let's talk about how the local Best Buy had hardly sold a single copy of this silly rehashed remake of a film?

This begins during the scene where Spock Prime meets Quinto's Spock at the end of the film:
SPOCK PRIME
Then I ask that you do yourself a
favor... put away logic, and do what
feels right. The world you've inherited
lives in the shadow of incalculable
devastation... but there's no reason you
must face it alone.
And from around his neck, he removes the PENDANT that until now,
we've only caught glimpses of. Places it on the table beside
his younger self. The feeling in his eyes is profound...
SPOCK PRIME (CONT'D)
This was a gift to me. Representing...
a dream. One we were unable to fulfill.
(softly)
The way you can now.
And moves to the door. Stops. Offers the VULCAN SALUTE:
SPOCK PRIME (CONT'D)
As my customary farewell would appear
oddly self serving, I will simply say...
good luck.
Their eyes hold. Spock turns, disappearing into the corridor.
Young Spock stares at the empty doorway a beat, his mind a
jumble of thoughts. Looks to the pendant... and realizes it's a
HOLO-EMITTER. After considering a beat, he hits an activation
button and a MOVING HOLOGRAPHIC MESSAGE materializes before him:
CAPTAIN JAMES T. KIRK. WILLIAM SHATNER. As always, brash, wry,
confident -- and SINGING:
KIRK/ SHATNER
Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to
you...
(stops, grins)
I know I know, it's illogical to
celebrate something you had nothing to do
with, but I haven't had the chance to
congratulate you on your appointment to
the ambassadorship so I thought I'd seize
the occasion... Bravo, Spock -- they tell
me your first mission may take you away
for awhile, so I'll be the first to wish
you luck... and to say...
(beat, emotional)
I miss you, old friend.
... and we're PUSHING IN on Young Spock, taking in the image of
Kirk's future self, the message, but above all -- the clear,
unquestionable friendship these two men had...
INT. CORRIDOR - CONTINUOUS
As Spock Prime walks off down the corridor, he passes right by a
man conferring with a nurse -- the man pauses, turns... it's
SAREK. Suddenly overcome by a feeling that the stranger who's
just passed him is... oddly familiar.
KIRK/SHATNER (V.O.)
I suppose I'd always imagined us...
outgrowing Starfleet together. Watching
life swing us into our Emeritus years...
INT. STARBASE ONE - HANGAR - ETERNAL NIGHT
MUSIC BUILDING -- glass walls reveal THE ENTERPRISE at dock,
UTILITY CRAFTS floating around it, repairing. Standing at
attention in rows, THE ENTERPRISE CREW -- over four hundred of
them wearing DRESS UNIFORMS -- TRACK DOWN the faces, all proud:
KIRK/SHATNER (V.O.)
I look around at the new cadets now and
can't help thinking... has it really been
so long? Wasn't it only yesterday we
stepped onto the Enterprise as boys?
That I had to prove to the crew I
deserved command... and their respect?
And we STOP ON YOUNG KIRK. Composed, focused, proud. A man.
And to every fan's delight, finally wearing his YELLOW SHIRT.
The FEDERATION COMMANDANT stands at a podium:
COMMANDANT
This assembly calls Captain James
Tiberius Kirk...
Kirk breaks from formation, pivots, marches down the hangar --
past UHURA... SULU... CHEKOV... SCOTTY. All Beaming. Notably
absent, is Spock. Kirk ascends the stairs, snaps to attention:
COMMANDANT (CONT'D)
Your inspirational valor and supreme
dedication to your comrades are in
keeping with the highest traditions of
service and reflect utmost credit to
yourself, your crew, and the Federation.
By Starfleet Order 28455, you are hereby
directed to report to Commanding Officer,
USS Enterprise, for duty as his relief.
Kirk turns. Walks to... PIKE. In a wheelchair now, wearing an
ADMIRAL'S UNIFORM. Overnight, his hair's turned totally grey --
but despite his trauma, his pride's overwhelming. They SALUTE
each other:
KIRK
I relieve you, Sir.
PIKE
... I am relieved.
He opens a BOX in his lap -- glorious in repose, a MEDAL:
PIKE (CONT'D)
And as Fleet Admiral, for your... unique
solution to the Kobayashi Maru, it's my
honor to award you with a commendation
for original thinking.
Pike containing a smirk, pins the medal to Kirk's chest...
PIKE (CONT'D)
(a touch choked)
Congratulations, Captain.
KIRK
Thank you, Sir.
Kirk turns to the crowd. Eyes shining. WILD APPLAUSE. OUR
MUSIC SOARS. Bones leans in to Sulu, rolling his eyes:
BONES
... Same ship, different day.
As Kirk rejoins his crew for hugs and congratulations, we go to
the BACK of the hangar... SPOCK PRIME. Watching. Moved beyond
words. He turns and leaves them to it... as he goes...
KIRK/SHATNER (V.O.)
I know what you'd say -- `It's their turn
now, Jim...' And of course you're
right... but it got me thinking:
INT. STARFLEET HOSPITAL - EARTH - DAY
Our montage comes full circle as we END on Kirk's transmission:
KIRK/SHATNER
Who's to say we can't go one more round?
By the last tally, only twenty five
percent of the galaxy's been chartered...
I'd call that negligent. Criminal even --
an invitation.
(MORE)
KIRK/SHATNER (CONT'D)
You once said being a starship captain
was my first, best destiny... if that's
true, then yours is to be by my side. If
there's any true logic to the universe...
we'll end up on that bridge again
someday.
Stops, grins. Because this is the part he needs to say most...
KIRK
Admit it, Spock. For people like us, the
journey itself... is home.
Young Spock's face. Lost in feelings that flood through him

Merrick, so it's true you're contractually obliged to post four STAR TREK pieces every week this November to ensure maximum exposure for the home release?!<p>
I hope Paramount paid well cos I can't imagine there's a single talkbacker out there with anything original left to say about this fucking movie...

Who knows how long these two guys have left? It would have been a great hommage to the legacy they've created to be able to see them BOTH on the big screen one last time in the roles that made them both icons (TJ Hooker and In Search Of...aside). Btw, do we really have to use "ShatKirk"? Is this as opposed to "PineKirk"?

I thought this was a missed opportunity; that the story was a big disappointment and had little or no emotional impact. This montage with Shatner as Kirk would have gone a long way to alleviating that gripe. Oh well.

written about it's another frigging star trek fest.
i've been coming here for a long time but lately aintitcool has lost all focus on what brought them to start this site to begin with.
it appears to be nothing more than a gladhanding excercise.
yes, i know you'll miss me but try to have fun with the dribs and drabs dropped on you like gravy off a turkey dinner.

There was some dude who was all about harping on the movie for, among other reasons, there was a GIANT FUCKING CANYON IN IOWA!!!! Well, just for the record, dipshit, it was a quarry, not a canyon, the JT dropped the Corvette in. You know, raw materials to build starships have to be aquired somewhere.
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Would have made a good scene, and maybe Robin P. might have liked it more.....

SPOILER contained if you've managed to not yet see this movie... <p>
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Personally I think that the biggest mistake made in this film was the destruction of the planet Vulcan, and it could have been fixed with a quick Shatner cameo at the end of of the movie. As Spock Prime watches young Kirk being given official command of the Enterprise, Shatner-Kirk approaches from behind and meets with a surprised Nimoy. After a quick, misty-eyed reunion, Shatner-Kirk informs Spock Prime that he's stolen the Enterprise, sling-shotted back in time, and is about to go further back in time to stop Nero before he wrecks the timeline. Spock expressed his concern that it may not be possible, but Shatner-Kirk blows off the concern with his usual bravado (maybe with some permutation of the "Needs of the Many..." speech), and the scene fades as Kirk and Spock leave to go take care of business.<p>
Then, the first scene featuring the Enterprise in the second movie could have it in orbit around the planet Vulcan. The crew has been on leave, but it's been called short due to some new threat that the Enterprise must face. Quinto-Spock beams up and Pine-Kirk asks about how his family is doing. Spock's reply could include mention of his (now not-dead) mother and how she feels that the budding friendship between Kirk and Spock has been good for her son (and he may even inquire about Kirk's father), and then they fly off to whatever adventure is planned for the next movie. An easy fix, one that is no more convoluted than the shooting script for Abram's first Trek movie, and it would probably have made the majority of real Trek fans happy.

he was one during his appearance on TNG so i just figured they were using that continuity. but really its no different than Kirk being an Admiral in the first few movies. we dont HAVE to see every second of their lives between shows or movies.

seriously don't ever become a script writer cause your idea is fucking lame, first off all why would you end a movie with a character wipiing out everything that had just happend and second of all if shat and nimoy did fix the timeline then how would you explain the advanced look of the enterprise in the second film...JJ has an established look and it's explained as being influenced by the timeline shift (Nero's attack led starfleet to advance weapons and ships), he'd have to redesign everything to look as it did in the series if they had used an ending like yours<P>The Plan with this new movie series is to revert the timeline at the end of them anyways, it will happen, just give it a few movies to do so, Paramount want to play around in this new continuity for a few years before correcting it and continuing the franchise as a post voyager TV series

...is there any movie in the past 2 years that AICN raved bout that was actually good (to the general TB audience)? I mean, GI Joe was trash but I liked TF2 (yea i know, racist, stupid, blah blah blah, but I ENJOYED it). Paranormal Act was not good so say many people. Star Trek obviously wasnt good (nice to see but not nice to watch). any other movies AICN been ravin bout?

Really wouldn't WillKirk have worked better? it reads like a nice and touching cameo and as someone who was against Kirk appearing as he is dead it gets around a lot, put him in 2 and be done with it, oh and someone tell him to pack a chute for Veridian III.

The Dark Knight<P>Iron man<P>Wall.E<P>The wrestler<P>Frost/Nixon<P>
UP<P>Moon<P><P>All movies that AICN have raved about that actually deserved the imense coverage they received at this site, I would also still put star trek on that list as it really is a great movie and i'm sure there are others i'm missing <P>Of course film is subjective in reality there never has been a "bad" movie since somewhere someone enjoyed it, it's all a personal preference as to how great a movie is...or isn't

am I gonna have paparazzi followin me and takin pics of me now cuz the legend spoke to me? if so, time to stop wearin underwear...<p>
but to your point, Dark Knight was great (anythin wit Joker in it is great to me...even when he appears on Batman Bold and Beautiful or whatever its called) and Iron Man was cool (as a origin, Tony Stark movie, not as a superhero movie). and I havent seen any of the other movies (not really a drama-type of guy) but do wanna see Up and Moon (on a borin, hand on myself type of day), but the movies u did list, I havent seen to much disapproval for them

I hope that is some kind of gay joke because seriously anyone who didn't laugh their ass of at that movie is obviously a closet homosexual afraid to admit they enjoyed a movie about a gay character.<P>It's ok Donkey_Lasher, there are many colors in the homo-rainbow, don't be afraid to let your colors shine

For me, it was terribly juvenial. The 'fleshing out' of Kirks history was so friggin stupid, with dad going down as mom cries out in birth pains, little Kirk in the sports car (See-he's ALWAYS been a rebel...just like grandpa...just like dad!) and the later 'James Dean' on the bike. Retarded to the Nth degree. As for the actor playing SPOCK: He is simply the most prissy, pussified vulcan ever to grace the screen. Where did they find this guy? Even as a young man, Nimoy had depth and weight and most importantly, a real sense that he could be dangerous if the right buttons were pushed. The new Spock? Tough, mysterious and dangerous? Hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahhahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahah.

Borat was a much funnier film. I have homosexual friends that agreed with me when they saw it.<p>
OH NO, my sexuality is being challenged by some nomark on a messageboard, how will I ever live with myself?<p>
Love and Kisses x

then we wouldnt be geeks would we?<br><br> Star Trek was a success. there will be more star trek. the AICN geeks will debate if it 'sucked donkey shit', or was 'chocolate covered pussy juice'.. and the world will continue to turn.

You want to bring honest criticism to the film, fine. I was making fun of all the wannabe fanboys who climb on the hate bandwagon merely for the sense of superiority it gives them. And there are a lot of those. It's one thing to dislike a film and then explain your dislike, it's another thing to spam talkbacks in an attempt to boost your own ego. I wasn't targeting you or anyone in particular--just that subset of folks who get off on hating.

While I don't agree that the film was shit, I agree that it is the whining nerd hardcore fans which indirectly prevent Trek from evolving or really innovating. Directors who tackle Trek films always feel beholden to these anal retentive twats.

his schtick was brilliant. then he jumped the shark by claiming to have worked on Dark Knight and a bunch of other big movies, and everyone that might have SORT of believed him, gave up.<p>it was fun for a while, Jett. now all that's left for you is to come up with a new screen name and start over again.

Yup. Whatever you think of Star Trek, James T. Kirk and his "luke moment" on his spokeless motorcycle and his bravado @ pike ("4 years? Ill do it in 3!") is much more badazz than that massive meh that came out this weekend.

And had a hellacious good time. It was fun, and incredibly ballsy at the same time. And hey--did the other Trek movies just forget about big alien creatures, or was that deliberate? The only reason those other movies are loved is because the original actors were in them. If they'd re-cast...bleh. Even "Khan." J.J. had the stones to actually try something new, and hit it out of the park for the majority of viewers. Nothing will ever make everyone happy, but "Star Trek" was one of the best movies ever made from a television series, IMHO.

I didn't like about this Star Trek is how they made very clear how important the the friendship between Spock and Kirk was, but the McCoy is just there. When looking at the original series it's the trinity of Kirk/McCoy/Spock that is the basis of how they needed to solve all their problems. Now in the movie Uhura is more of a central character than McCoy?!?!

I'm not sure I could've turned this down, as an actor. This is the kind of scene that actors dream of. Having said that, I wonder if it's a bit much from a writing standpoint. It feels slightly tacked on. It would be nice to see this developed more in a later film. Perhaps there is a series of these holo-letters that someone (McCoy?) discovers and gives to Spock Quinto? And these unfold throughout the film in direct juxtaposition to the tension between present Kirk and Spock? This would open up a larger role for Bill and still allow the 'kids' to shine.

The nexus will make an appearence in the sequel, and since the nexus exist without time, Kirk is alive and well in there. The current plan is to have spock prime be close to death and wishing to join the nexus so that he may live in there, JJ is currently reserching archive footage to perhaps include a CGI version of deforest kelly in there too, it won't be a major plot device but the film will include a row, row, row your boat scene as a final sendoff (The original row row row your boat footage is being CGI'd to age up deforest and to blend it in with newly shot footage of nimoy and shatner singing)

thats the unfortunate nature of a film vs. a series. you have a very limited time frame for development, so you need to concentrate on a couple of main points.
the series format of tv can't be beat for character development.

that said however, perhaps something else was snuck in there that pinekirk is unaware of..perhaps in a sequel he will start remembering certian things and the bad guys will learn of this and want whats in his head

because he didn't want to do the role anymore. He was sick of it. So if it's anyone's fault that he wasn't in this film it's his.<p> Abrams' Trek was fine without Shatner, and like Hipshot said above, nothing will ever please anyone and I'm glad Abrams had the balls to finally take Trek in a different direction. The absolute last thing we needed was another boring, preachy, dune buggy shoot out TNG movie.<p>Oh and anyone that makes a Dawson's Trek or Trek 90210 comment is showing what an idiot they are. Seriously, do a little research before you speak.

I watched it again this weekend now that it's out. A lot of people bitch about how it sucked. It wasn't that bad at all. The lens flare was a bit much, but the story was pretty much on par for a trek film. People act like every episode was City on the Edge of Forever.
Star Trek is still what gave us 'Spock's Brain'
"Red Matter" is stupid? How about giant space amoebas? A society completely based on 30s gangsters? 90% of all planets in the galazy have the same three boulders and dead tree on them?
It was a well paced adventure flick made sense for what it was.

when he's describing the situation to pine kirk in the mind meld, originally we saw scenes of picard, data and laforge helping to put the plan in motion and too build the ship.<P>oddly enough JJ removed it because theres alot of info to take in during that scene and seeing some TNG favorites in there cast any fan in the audience to lose track and miss what spock prime was saying<P>it was filmed though, sadly enough it's not included on the Bluray because Paramount is still uncertain what their plans for the TNG franchise is, they don't want to paint themselves into a corner but connecting the characters to this world

Just bought my first HDTV and Bluray and Star Trek was its maiden voyage.. sorry haters, that's a pretty damn good movie and it looks absolutely sensational in HD... yes there are nitpicks but overall an excellent film.

JJ managed to courageously tweak and update the series without disrespecting the original. I agree that it would have been cool to have some sort of nod to Shatner/Kirk, but it works well as it is. The 'leaked' script is pretty nice really. It probably would have been a fitting and touching alternate ending. Would't mind Shatner/Kirk popping up somewhere along the way. Star Trek; 4/5 stars! (p.s. did anyone else here find Scotty's little midget alien buddy a bit too much?Hope he disappears)

It's perfectly reasonable to take issue with some issues with this Trek movie--IMO, because they got so many things right. You'd think Abrams would've gotten a few people to do a sanity check on a few points. NO!!! YOU'RE A HATER!!! YOU HAVE NO SOUL IF YOU DON'T LOVE EVERY SECOND!!! LOOK AT THE BOX OFFICE!!! Really, you lemmings who make such arguments must love the taste of turd.

it really does look incredible and it's just very exciting the entire way through.
But I could have sworn I saw this Kirk as Shatner birthday message clip somewhere online a while back? Is this the same or is it longer or what?

This new Star Trek is aimed at tweens who are into Twilight and Hannah Montana. I'm not going to bitch about it anymore because:
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a) It's become boring.
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and
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b) Anyone with the slightest knowledge of storytelling knows that Kurtzman and Orci fucked it up from the word go.
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So you kids can have Chris Pine and Zachary Quinto. I'll keep William Shatner and Leonard Nimoy. The originals, not the impersonations.

<p>Abrams' Star Trek grossed 2 1/2 times more than any other Star Trek film. more than 5X more than the last Star Trek film and nearly 3 1/2 times as much as the last Shatner/Nimoy film.</p><p>Yeah......people hate the new Star Trek. *eyeroll*</p>

at the end of Star Trek 2 and the beginning of Star Trek 3 so its not unprecedented, however that's spelled. fact i wouldnt be surprised if they just used that same audio but i havent seen this since the summer so remember not do i.

Yea cause it made a ton of money, people enjoyed it, it didn't look like shit, people aren't ashamed to talk about it in public, the franchise actually has a future now....etcetera, etcetera, etcetera, You Lose! Good Day Sir!

True that nimoy had done the "these are the voyages" before but this was the first time he said no "one" instead of no "man"...it's a new recording and the first time he's used the current official star trek sing on

That would have been a great scene if it had been filmed as is and included in the final film. Not sure if Spock was an Ambassador before Kirk died but I think the novel for Generations may have mentioned something about it.

It's fun, it's enjoyable... it just doesn't make much sense. Nero has zero motivation for what he does. Hell, he barely had motivation before going back in time... then it was like he was declaring an eternal vendetta against the fire department because his house burned down. That's kind of a weak motive unless there's some evidence of corruption or something in the fire department *letting* your house burn down, if not starting the fire themselves. Hell, it wasn't even his local fire department... it's like getting pissed that the fire department from 2 counties over didn't come and put out your burning house in time. Dude... it was nice enough of them to drop everything and try, since it wasn't even their problem to begin with. (And really, if you had enough time to call them and wait for them to build a special firetruck loaded with red goo to do the job, maybe you should have just gotten your family out ahead of time while you were at it?)<br><br>
So already a weak reason to turn into a Spock-centric Khan rip-off. But then, he's back in time to before his house burned down at all... and he's still pissed off? In fact, he's so pissed off that he doesn't think to inform people on his home planet of the danger they'll be facing in a few centuries and make sure that they're ready for it... not to mention equipped with technology far beyond that available to any other people in existence that they'll own the freaking universe by the time the date arrives?<br><br>
So I guess what I'm saying is, should my house burn down tonight and afterward I suddenly find myself back in 1982 with the complete stock exchange history downloaded onto my iphone, I'm probably not going to be focused on utterly destroying the firetruck driver who took the wrong offramp while trying to respond to my 911 call. I'm going to be thinking "Sweet... not only is my family not going to burn up in 27 years, but they're going to be so loaded that they won't even be living in that dump."

hasn't seen Twilight. And I envy them for that. But unfortunately I HAVE seen Twilight... and you're full of shit if you think they're even remotely similar. The characters in Twilight have no personality or life in them. You can't honestly say the same of Star Trek... hell even Asimov has said the cast was well done.

This is why Trekkies have the reputation that they do. <p>Wah it's too poular now.<p>Wah red matter makes no sense.<p>Wah Pine is six months younger than Shatner was.<p>Seriously, go spank it to Insurrection for the 578th time. Let the rest of us enjoy the fact that TOS is back.

look, bitching about things in the trek film is one thing... but saying things like- Nero shoulda got his family off the planet, or spock should have re-set the timeline, or why didn't they sneak up behind nero's ship and destroy it, or this or that... fucking shut up!! <p>there's only one shoulda in this film and thats kirk shoulda been given a five year mission at the end. the next film would have been half way thru that mission, possibly even the end of that mission. <p>now THAT would have been cool

I just had some things to take off my chest with that "saga" I finally finished it and placed it in capone, massa, and beaks' reviews. Heads up it's kind of long. Here's the link to I think beaks' http://www.aintitcool.com/node/43142

..a lot of these "either/or" arguments become silly and irrelevant. Before Abrams' Trek, there were TOS "purists" who argued that Trek was primarily a rock-em-sock-em adventure saga arguing with other "purists" that TOS was "allegorical & philosophical journey masquerading as space adventure," when the REALITY is that TOS was both. Of course there came the TOS vs. TNG wars, then the DS9 crowd, then the VOY crowd, then the ENT gathering, arguing over this, that and the other, not to mention the movie crowd & the novelization folks. HERE IS THE THING: I have little patience for the You should love every minute of Abram's Trek" crowd, but the "Abrams Trek is shit" mafia needs to calm the fuck down. If Star Trek (in ALL its forms) was the epitome of narrative and character continuity adhering to a Pixar-like standard of consistent quality, they might have a point. Otherwise the bitching & whining is like Adam Lambert's performance on the AMA's: clumsy faux-cock sucking amid a cacophony of screeching.

It was good for 2 years. Season 3 sucked. The Kirk guys had three movies that were good, then they tanked. The TNG crew had ONE good movie. All the series after TNG sucked ass. The only people overhyping Trek are the TOS fans.

Just finished that show. Great overall story arc (the only Trek show that has one story through all seasons). The characters are all very well developed. The dominion war scenes, with hundreds of ships onscreen at a time, are a real treat. Nice bittersweet finale too.

The most obvious way they could have done a Kirk cameo was to have the ending changed so Spock Prime returns to the future. Of course, it would be the CHANGED future, and very-much-alive Kirk could be waiting for him in the future. It wouldn't have been OUR Kirk, but the new timeline Kirk, but it still could have been played by Shatner. Of course, that would mean no sequels with Nimoy cameos, which is probably the one and only reason they didn't send Spock Prime back to the future.

I was watching my newly bought DVD, suck it haters, and it occured to me that Nero's motivation actually didn't make sense. What exactly does he accomplish by killing Vulcan, Earth, and other Federation planets?<p>
Spock was late trying to save the Romulans, he didn't blow up the goddam star. How is anyone in the Federation to blame for a natural disaster? How does killing Federation planets stop the star from still going nova in the future? and so on...<p>
Yeah, the revenge plot makes ZERO fucking sense, but I still enjoy the movie.

Yep, it makes absolutely no sense whatsoever. He travels back in time so that his people can live free of ummm...whatever tyranny the Federation causedthem, by not saving them from the black hole that will still open and consume their planet.<p>Not the best of plans.Still, the guy is a miner, and probably not the sharpest tool in the tin. After all, why bother to drill to the core of a planet to open a blakc hole inside? I'm sure a black hole on the surface of the planet would be just as bad. Anyway, disengage brain, enjoy movie, that's what I say (in this case)

....you hit the nail on the head about why this particular 'timeline altering' storyline made little sense where Nero was concerned....
He and his crew should have been having a party knowing things could work out differently....<P>Have to say that although I have many issues with this particular 'TOS' movie, that if that intended Prime Kirk sequence and voice-over had been included, that there would have been a lot less of a bitter taste over J.J.'s version....

But Nero lost a planet a wife and a child, he needed someone to blame and who better then the man that had the idea to prevent the disater in the fist place<P>Nero didn't need motivation because he was clearly at the end of his mind and just wanted to hurt other in the same way he was hurt

I thought that was made evident when Pike tried to reason with him... so it's hard to say why he did things. Spock Prime promised the Romulans to save their planet and failed to do; so I guess he blamed him. And as for Nero's failure to warn Romulus, I had assumed that he planned to.. but only after he had destroyed all of the Federation planets first. He had 100+ years in which to do it; so what's the rush? I liked Nero. I thought he was a nasty crazy unpredictable villain. Sure, the movie had several problems but so does all of the rest of the Trek stuff. Personally, I'd like to see more stuff in this new timeline. And the Romulans were pretty freakin' cool IMO... hope they bring them back, along with some old school Klingons at some point.

..is that every other crew member would have to be just as nutty to sit around for 25 YEARS waiting for revenge. 25 years people...think about that. Instead of say..going home and warning your people, thereby changing things, we'll sit around and do nothing for 25 years. I mean, besides the mutiny that would probably take place within a year of sitting around,the whole thing just breaks down given any thought.<p>
Really fun movie though, and Karl Urban deserves an award.

It's not a difficult concept at all, just a stupid one.<p>
The only way this makes any sense is if some Federation and/or Vulcan experiment resulted in the creation of the supernova. Of course the writers saw fit to leave out any causal effect on the part of the Federation at all...<p>
So yeah, makes no fucking sense on any level whatsoever. And I still ENJOYED this movie because of the characters.

I've not encountered ONE person who disliked the movie in my real life...only in geek talkbacks. Are there some plot holes? Yes. Did it hamper my enjoyment of a superbly shot, cast, directed, scored and even sometimes scripted movie? No. The day I stop getting choked up during the first 10 minutes of this film is the day I'll concede to the haters.

...not sure where, prob a JJ interview though. Remember hearing about Spock prime handing over a holo-thingy, and Shatner singing happy birthday. Didn't hear about the rest of it though. It sounded shit, but this scripted version would have been awesome.

...would surely be to advise the Federation, and other races, helping to repair the galaxy as much as possible. He's the only person in existence with knowledge of how things were meant to be. Spock knows what planets should be checked out, which ones should be left alone etc. Bring back Nemoy in Trek 2!

A longer look would've oversold it. As it is, WE know how big it all is going to be between them, but they don't - that's as it should be, given what happens in the movie. THEY don't KNOW of the gravitas. The lack of a big deal is EXCELLENT.

Lots of flash (literally) but minimal substance. Not the best Trek ever but not the worst. It's probably somewhere behind Wrath of Khan, First Contact, and Voyage Home. Maybe about on par with Undiscovered Country. JJ's glare on the camera lens effect was distracting and pulled me out of the film every damn time. Not a bad movie, but I won't go see a sequel in the theater. I am glad he never did Superman.

It was not his planet. Was he hoping Spock would be overcome by grief? A Vulcan? Even a half-vulcan? <p> And, um once again, it was not even Spock's planet - it was in a completely different timeline. So if Nero did not give a shit about Romulus in this timeline, why would he think Spock would give a shit about Vulcan in this timeline? <p> Bad writing there hoss.

It's extremely easy to deconstruct film plots (really, it can be done with anything), but I totally get what you're talking about. I'll confess, I was thinking nearly that same thing when I watched it.<P>
I do however think that trying to retcon the entire timeline while spring boarding off the established universe must have been remarkably tough. We're actually kind of lucky they didn't just explain it as a "mirrorverse". Instead, they were kind enough to try to attach it to what we know.

I would have cried like a baby. The heart and soul of Trek is and always shall be the relationships between Kirk/Spock.and McCoy. To have gotten to hear a Shatner monologue that adressed that and OFFICIALLY passed the torch,so to speak,I would have lost my shit...much like I did as a kid at the end of Wrath of Khan. I enjoyed J.J.'s Trek but this...this would have put it over the top. Is it too late for a directors cut with this scene added in????

I thought it was a lot of fun, more than I expected it to be, and the cast was pretty great. I'm looking forward to the next one they make.<br><br>
I just don't want to give it a pass on the plot problems because it's already done well enough that a sequel is assured, and I'd like them to try and make the next one even better. I think there's plenty of room for a tighter script that makes more sense and has a great conflict at the core. They could easily just coast on the charm of the cast, but frankly that's what made for such uneven original Trek movies. Hopefully, without the need to try to force events to conform to a "starting point", they'll be able to avoid a lot of the strained plot developments in the next one.

I'll post the same thing I did on Trekmovie as it's really the way I feel about this scene that might have been : " My god! They should have put this in! It would have been the icing on the cake. The perfect frame for a perfect picture. The emotional punch this would have added would have knocked this movie way out of the park.
It was already a very good emotional ride but this would have been extra special.
Too bad it couldn’t have been in the movie. He might be in the next one but to end the first one this way there wouldn’t have been a dry eye in the house. A nice surprise at the end. Oh well It was still a great movie! I just kept expecting Mr. Shatner to show up ( surprise! ) somewhere. ".

<P>I'm still of the opinion that what needs to happen is that Trek needs to be split into two: movies like XI for the fans of such things, and a new TV series.</P>
<P>The new series could be a complete reboot written for those who prefer a more thoughtful, intelligent vision of Trek (that comes off as a little condescending, but I'm trying to stay polite). It could take into account the last 40 years of historical, social, scientific and technological change, for example adjusting the Eugenics Wars forward in time. They could redefine the technology of this new Trek universe (as well be more consistent in its application). They could avoid all of the continuity errors that always seemed to crop up. The possibilities are endless.</P>
<P>In order to avoid confusion with the Abramsverse Trek, the series could begin by telling the story of the Earth-Romulan War (also moved forward in time). It could have be what Enterprise should have been.</P>
<P>Later, after the Abramsverse-movies have run their course, a new re-telling of the saga of Kirk crew could be done.</P>
<P>I realize this is just a pipe dream (unless someone at Paramount is reading!, then I say, go for it), but at least this way, everybody would get what they want.</P>

I concur with WickedJacob's comment above: season 4 of Enterprise was actually decent. I tuned back in (the last episode of Enterprise that I had seen prior to Season 4 was the Romulan mine-field episode), after I had heard that Berman and Braga's reign of error was over.

The "new series" would be set in another universe, and needn't affect what has already been portrayed. I would really like to see that conflict, and its affects on the cultures of Earth, Vulcan, Andoria, Tellar.

If the Orci/Kurtzman script had been filmed with a regular Trek budget, this franchise would truly be dead forever. Abrams has proven that if you wrap a turd in enough bling, it will indeed be very shiny.

The opening reminded me of ST:TMP (and I guess TVH) with the sudden appearance of an impossibly huge, powerful, and unknown ship.<P>Thought Nero's motivation was ridiculous as well. Why not use the time to convince the Federation and the Romulans that in so many years the Romulan sun is going to go nova . . . shouldn't be too hard considering the advanced level of the ship.<P>The way the crew were both promoted and finally brought together had an unsavory Starship Troopers quality.

All the "die hards" make their own movie and stfu
(or die in fire ... your choice)
There was absolutely, positively NOTHING "wrong" with this film.
Abrams used one of the most overused plots in the world ... time travel ... and used it to explain why THIS Star Trek was different then YOUR Star Trek.
FFS, how many times have time travel plots used the line "well, if you WERE able to go back in time, your mere presence would cause a rift in the continuum with reprecussions that boggle the mind!"
Hell, even drunken time travel debates include a variation of that idea.
So, Abrams just put that train of thought into a movie where ... thank GOD ... he would be able to give us a "Star Trek Begins" using the same characters with only SLIGHTLY shifting character traits.
Sure, now we've got a angst-ridden Spock, a rebel-without-a-clue Kirk, a Hillary-Clinton Uhura, and a genius-in-bufoon's-clothing Scotty (just to name a few)
... but did we really, REALLY, want a spiffy, shiney version of the same story from the 1960s ... or isn't this "re-telling" infinetly better since it isn't like a Tim Burton version that takes a steaming dump on the original?
wtfever ...
bitch more

Sorry I did not have time to completely read all of the above comments so I hope that I am not repeating too much, but because of the changes that Nero made it completely changes the entire time line of the crew, which means that Kirk does not have to die at all in this new time line. There is no reason what so ever that Kirk cannot still be alive, on top of that Prime/Spock is alive now is the new present day which means that he can warn Kirk or Quinto Spock or both and then Kirk can cheat his original death.

I still have a problem with young Kirk and young Spock meeting old Spock. No one should see their own future, but beyond that. Come on, everything you can imagine has happened to these characters. On top of all that Spock meets the young version of his best friend and himself? Wow! It felt forced, but I still enjoy the film. I could have done without Spock meeting his young self though. That felt tagged on.

I don't really mind that young Kirk and Spock met Old Spock. Young Spock might know where he ends up, but Kirk still doesn't know. And the timeline changed anyway. If Old Spock never ran into the two, Kirk and Spock would be bitter rivals, and not friends. Maybe Kirk or Spock would have even died in the battle against Nero, and Earth might have been destroyed?

...I liked the way it ended before, but now I wish they had used that scene. I'm sorry Shatner didn't want to do it or whatever it was that happened. I think it would have really carried the idea that Kirk and Spock were destined to be friends and that their friendship was something bigger than both of them.

Didn't he fall into the nexus? Didn't Guinan say that there is always a part of you that remains in the nexus? So couldn't Kirk re-emerge out of the nexus? I mean I know it's nerdy but Guinan was both in and out of the nexus at the same time right? Why not Kirk. I'm probably missing something... Let me know if I am.

It wasn't an AWFUL movie, it was mediocre as far as brainless Sci Fi goes. I can think of at least five films from this year that should be getting more coverage, and one of them is Terminator Salvation.

My wish ( still is ) that in an alternate time line, Kirk is alive and well.
Now thanks to what transpires in the new Trek films, perhaps there is a glimmer of hope.
I still can't believe they killed him off in the first fucking place ! :-(

It wasn't all THAT far fetched. He made it seem like he was going to use the time to save his people. He was just going to make sure Romulus' mortal enemies, the Federation weren't around any more to put them at risk.
He still had to observe his family and culture suffering a painful death (even if he can change it now.) He still can't go back to them (he's a miner in a ship that accidentally went to the past, not some time travelling scientist type.)
His crew all witnessed their loved ones dying. It was a little tenuous but not any worse than most sci fi villains.
Khan himself could have been a free man with a nice ship. Had to get back at the guy who uh... defended himself when attacked.
The time travel angle was no better or worse than the premise behind the entire Terminator franchise.

Khan was essentially a Native American chief who made a deal with the government to stop fighting and move his people to a reservation, only once he was there the reservation went to hell and the majority of his people suffered and died horribly while the big government that moved them couldn't have cared less. Kirk was the representative of that government in his personal dealings, and so that's the guy he hated the most for what happened. There was no option for saving his people. <br><br>
Nero had an obsession with killing Spock because Spock tried to save the Romulans and failed, although he inadvertently created a situation where they could all still be saved anyway. You can twist a motive out of that, but it's obviously pretty weak, comparatively. Spock never did a thing against the Romulans, had fought hard to save them, and they weren't even doomed after he failed. Had they dropped the Spock obsession, then Nero's plot would have made more sense... You could argue that trying to get along with the Federation had lead, inadvertently, to the end of Romulus... it would be better to set up a future where the Federation no longer existed and Romulans owned the entire galaxy, giving them plenty of options on where to relocate when their sun goes nova, without them being a broken people. Make it a calculated gambit to upset the balance of power in history as a matter of racial survival. It's just the whole "must make Spock suffer!" angle that doesn't make a lick of sense, especially when it gets in the way of actually valuable goals.

But your comment about them actually filming the TNG cast in the mindmeld scene is just not true. Data, Picard, and LaForge all appear in the Countdown prequel comic and their place in the story is covered there. It's pretty common knowledge the TNG crew being in the film was tinkered with, but it never got as far as actually filming it and you know it. Your reasoning for them leaving it off the blu-ray also doesn't make a shred of sense. There are plenty of deleted scenes (some on Paramount discs) that run completely contrary to what ends up being in future films. They aren't committed to do something because of something in a deleted scene. That's just plain silly. I'm perfectly willing to eat my words if this so-called TNG footage ever shows up someday, but we both know that isn't going to happen.
As far as the scripted Shatner stuff, I think that would've been a great way to emotionally lift the film. I agree with most, it needs to be trimmed up. But they would've done that, I'm sure. Just look at the Spcok Prime speech on those same pages - they were shortened quite a bit for the final cut of the film.

Since when does a fucking Romulan have to have a grudge against the Federation in order to want to attack them? He would have been ten times better as a general, a warlord or even an aggressive politician...who the fuck thinks a MINER is a scary vocation?!

I agree. I always had a problem with the whole Nexus thing. If Guinan existed in both places, then so would Soren... so why was he so hell-bent on getting back... if he was already there? Makes no sense. Same with Kirk. I was never opposed to killing him off, but the way they did it had no resonance because he was still "alive" in the Nexus, right? Basically, the whole Nexus thing was horribly thought-out.

I think they were aiming for those mind-blowing sci-fi ideas that are too big to wrap your head around. Near as I can tell, it's just that the Nexus itself is timeless... everyone who ends up in it are essentially there at the same time. So if I go in, then come back out, live my entire life and die and some great-great-great grandchild of mine goes in hundreds of years from now, he'll be there at the same time I was. Think of it as if the only place you could possibly time travel to was the conference room of the Des Moines Ramada Inn at noon on Thursday, Nov. 26 2009. Genghis Khan Nexus-travels? Boom... Ramada Inn, Thursday, noon. Oortza, intergalactic conqueror of 8723 Nexus-travels ? Boom... Ramada Inn, Thursday, noon. You could exit the conference room to any time period and place, apparently, but you won't want to because while you're there time doesn't pass, making you immortal, and as a bonus the buffet there is totally to die for.<br><br>
I guess the main question is, if you go back, are there now 2 of you hanging out by the omelet station?

...I believe was explained in the Countdown prequel - There was sort of Federation / Vulcan / Romulan politics going on regarding Spock's plan; Nero and his team offered to help Spock put his plan into effect since valuable time was being wasted.
The star went supernova prematurely and Nero was off-planet when it happened so he blames Spock & the Federation.

...from either of the original Series, it may have been good, but instead they made it too fucking commercial and went all "Hollywood" with a big name Director, writers who cannot write and gave the characters the most absurd actions and motivations (Kirk trying to nail Uhura? What a load of fucking shit - he respected the hell out of her) and a bunch of actors , who seem out of their depth in a Science Fiction film. (Eric Bana was a completely weak villan)
But as usual, the lap dogs of Hollywood ate it up, shaky camera work and all.

Your comment should have been the POSTER blurb for JJ's Star Trek, for all the right and wrong reasons! As people have already noted Star Trek was always about both Action & Adventure with a some thoughtful ideas and characters thrown in. The big stink is how dumbed down and thoughtless JJ's Trek is perceived as being. Yes, TOS was pretty dumb at times, but it had also a substantial track record of smart to overshadow that, and just the fact that was the pure shit right out of the original creative tap, not some generations later Star Wars wannabe hackery. If your mantra is apt for the NEXT movie, I'd say Trek is truly dead, and this Paris Hilton Stupid Trek can reign in the Hell that it's created, fine by me, and no begrudging you peeps that like it. Frankly, if there isn't the creative force out there to put something more intelligent forth, then it's just not meant to be. I mean, ever since Star Trek, and latter, Star Wars, there's been efforts to duplicate the formula with mostly disappointing results. Heck, even George Lucas,the originator of his own franchise, had difficulty reaching previous achievements, despite having better resources and technology behind him! Star Trek went mostly down the route of inherited wealth, sometimes it was appreciated and well tended, and other times, seemingly mostly, it was blown and taken for granted. Only time will tell I suppose which path is fully chosen.

EXACTLY! Thats what the haters are missing! They would see the greatness of 'STAR TREK 09' if they would just 'Disengage the Brain.' Try it, Haters. It works for anything: Books, sports, movies, voting, relationships, et. When watching a crappy J.U.V.E.N.I.L.E. movie like STAR TREK 09 just stop thinking and look at all the pretty colors, pretty man-boys (Spock and Kirk, anyone) and cool sounds. If you still find that the movie sucks just 'Disengage Brain' and 'PRESTO!' a bad movie becomes a good movie. After that, if you still think the movie (Star Trek 09) sucks the tapeworms out of a dead cats ass, then you, sir ARE A HATER!! So GO AWAY HATER!! FUCK YOU, FUCKFACE HATER FUCKER FUCK!! I HATE YOU, HATER!!! I HOPE YOU FUCKIN HATERS FUCKIN DIE AND GET A LIFE BECAUSE ALL YOU FUCKIN DO IS FUCKIN HATE ON STAR TREK FUCKIN STAR TREK FUCKIN HATER.

I just watched STAR TREK, just to see why so many people hate it. I’m not a Star Trek fan but I do know a bit of the Trekky-verse. I figured since this is pretty much the beginning much like BATMAN BEGINS, everything that is known is suppose to be suspended. At first I really didn’t know what to think of this prequel (I guess you can refer it as that). But over all it was a decent movie. So far there have been complaints about the emotional aspect, and since it is the beginning, isn’t everything supposed to start out rocky? Why must everything start out smooth and easy?!?! Every one is barely getting to know each other and the abilities each person has. But I do understand why the Trekky fans are up in arms with the continuity being fucked with. No one likes a movie that fucks up the established source material. But all in all, it was a fun action sci-fi movie. Was it perfect? No. Did it entertain? Yes. Hell, it wasn’t as bad as Wolverine or Transformers 2 that’s for sure. Let’s see if Abram learned anything from this on the second one.

How is this a valid argument for this film being called good. How can Star Trek, something that is about social commentary, be FUN? Come on, the fuck outta here. It's stupid thinking like this that is why the film industry is the way it is. ABRAMTREK is NOT Star Trek. It's just another Abrams vehicle BUT, he is ripping off the hard creative work of the original Trek folk.

In fact, I think the social commentary and BIG IDEAS worked better on the small screen Trek vs. the big-screen Trek. Past Trek movie makers have tried again and again to make a film that was more like the heady episodes of the show, and they've failed each time. Oh sure, I'm sure Abrams and co. will try to do a "serious" Trek movie at some point, and it will be a relative dud, a space-filler until the next BIG ADVENTURE which fans like myself happen to love.

Shatner was a genius because he took all his pay for Priceline as stock in the company in the early years and he sold it all before the .com bust. He pulled in over $100M when he sold his shares.<BR><BR>
Then after the dust settled, priceline survived and Shat comes back!<BR><BR>
Why bother to go back and play Kirk when you can do a 30 second spot 4 times a year?

have had a private moment with Pine's Kirk at the end of the film that ended with something like..."Now Jim before I go, there is something I need to tell you in confidence.... 40 years from now, you may cross paths with a scientist named Soran...." as they walk off camera.
Spock would never have let his best friend go out the way Kirk Prime did. Subtle little one line reference that takes 10 seconds would have solved the issue for the future. Or at the very least would have been a nice wink to the old fans....
Bigger problem I had with the film was Pike leaving a cadet on academic suspension as the first officer after being on board 20 minutes. If I was already the third in command on the Enterprise, I'd have punched someone in the face right there and then. Cadet to captain in one mission makes blood spurt out my nose.

Kirk never met Soran. He didn't know about Soran until Picard talked to him about it. Also, Pike knew Kirk knew Kirk wasn't your run of the mill average officer, because he saw what Kirk did to the Maru exam.

This scene would have been fine in the film. Doesn't seemed forced as all of the interviews lead us to believe.
I would have been happy to just have seen ShatnerKirk on computer screen while Nero was doing his research (he mentions it during the fight scene with PineKirk).

I appreciate that Roddenberry tried to use Trek as a force for good, but every issue centered Trek is about as ham fisted as it gets. Half black & white people anyone?<p>
And as many issue-centric episodes there were, there were probably 10 that weren't. So I'm perfectly satisfied with action & adventure minus Pastor Rodenberry's speech of the week.

"The only love I have is for Dick" This is the only truly believable thing you've said on these TB's...EVER! "i still say he was a misunderstood president, hell i voted for him 4 times" Seeing as how Nixon first ran in 1960, then again in '68, and '72, for a total of 3 possible votes, would not only make you a MINIMUM of 66 years old, but a complete liar! "I don't wear underware FETT, your mom ate them all" "she dick it right in her mouth like she was all ohhhhh give me more for my cervix
fucking pig" And finally, these well-thought-out retorts not only denounce your grammatical ability to make it as a successful screenwriter, but prove you're nothing more than some douchebag with no life, pretending he has one. Do us all a favor, and choke on your own, over-sized tongue, you useless fucking mongoloid!

Have no idea WTF you're talking about...ST2:WOK, ST4:TVH and ST6:TUC(the best TREK movies) all had major social commentary.<p>
WOK was about the consequences of Kirk's bungled responsibility to Khan's people jeopardizing the lives of both his family and his old ship, with an additional bit about a device that doubled as both life-giver and doomsday weapon. In the end, Khan's hatred was too extreme and he destroyed his own in his furious quest...reminds me of al Qaeda in this era, or any number of failed revolutionary movements throughout history.<p>
TVH was more obvious: take care of the environment, or it could come along and bite you in the ass later. A large number of scientists would agree.<p>
In particular, the third best (ST6:TUC) was directly modeled on Chernobyl and the collapse of the Soviet Union. Definite social commentary.<p>
Getting tired of people around here saying an "air sandwich" tastes better than a Brooklyn Pastrami on rye...

Those were some pretty leg showing uniforms for an enlightened military. Just about every chick in the galaxy and at least one from anther galaxy (the ones that could turn people into little geometric shapes) and one from another dimension (had a castle, turned into a giant cat) just needed a little Kirklovin'
Don't forget McCoy. What a bigot! Anytime Spock pissed him off he just listed off a couple of physical features that made Spock different than his own people followed by a mytholgical creature "Spock! You pointy eared, green blooded, Hobgoblin!" We laugh and take it in stride, but had he done the same with Sulu? (Sulu, you slanty eyed, yellowed skinned, half elf!) he'd have been considered a total racist.

This would have been a great bookend for the film. I enjoyed the new Trek (yes, I know, blasphemous). My only true complaints aside from minor plot conveniences were that the editing was a bit too abrupt, particularly in the second half. The characters are what make Trek work more than anything. <p>
Kill me, but I look forward to the next film.